ด้วยรักตลอดไป (With Love, Forever)

Jeff

[A couple of weeks later]

On Monday, I was going through my lessons and had just sent one of my classes for break when I noticed Xinxin sitting quietly in the playground by herself. This puzzled me—she was usually so full of life, always surrounded by friends.

I left my classroom and walked over to her.

"Hello, Xinxin."

"Hello, Mr. Jyff."

"Are you okay? Why aren't you playing with your friends?"

"I don't feel like playing. I just want to sit here."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

She gave me a puzzled look, and I realized I might have phrased it too formally for a child. Softening my expression, I smiled and asked again, this time more gently. She just shook her head, her small shoulders rising and falling with a deep sigh.

I didn't push her. Instead, I nodded and told her to let me know if she needed anything. But as I walked back to my classroom, I couldn't shake the image of her sitting there—so small, so lost in thought.

I took out my phone and texted Jackson. Over the last few weeks, our conversations had become more than just about Xinxin or music—we were slipping into real friendship. He called me back almost immediately.

His voice was tight, as if he had been holding back a storm. "Is she okay?"

"She's... not in the best of moods. Did something happen at home?"

There was a silence. I heard him exhale, long and slow. When he spoke again, his voice was quieter, almost drained.

"Xinxin's mother came back into the picture."

I frowned. "What?"

"She wants custody of Xinxin."

I sat down, gripping the edge of my desk. "Why now? After all this time?"

There was another pause, then a wry chuckle—bitter, exhausted. "Because she's in a 'better place' now. She says she's ready to be a mother again." He let out a sharp breath. "She's been showing up, trying to talk to me about shared custody. I refused. This morning, right before school, I got served with a lawyer's letter from her."

I could hear something rustling in the background, like he was pacing. Then, in a quieter voice, almost like he was confessing: "I lost it. I... I flung the letter. Xinxin saw."

My chest tightened. "Oh."

"She begged me to tell her what was going on." His voice cracked just slightly before he recovered. "She's been seeing her mother come around—you know what she calls her? 'Big lady.' Like she's a stranger." He gave a humorless laugh. "And she is a stranger, Jeff. She left. She walked away like we were nothing, and now she just—she just waltzes back in like none of it happened."

I could hear the pain in his voice, laced with anger but mostly... fear.

"What are you going to do?" I asked softly.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I was supposed to meet her today, try to talk sense into her, but my helper just called—she has a family emergency and can't watch Xinxin. I have to postpone. But the meeting with her lawyer and her? That's in two days."

I could feel his exhaustion through the phone.

"Why don't I bring Xinxin home today after class?" I suggested. "She can stay with us while you sort things out."

"Jeff, I can't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking. I'm offering. My mom is working, but she wouldn't mind, and you know she adores Xinxin."

"I know, but—"

"Have you told Ms. Luo yet?"

A pause. Then a reluctant chuckle. "She got it out of me today. She also offered to watch Xinxin."

"There you go, then. It's settled."

"Jeff..." His voice was quieter now, more hesitant. "I really couldn't impose."

"It's not an imposition," I assured him. "Xinxin is like my child too. I'll take care of her."

There was a pause. Then—"Your... your child?"

I felt heat rise to my face. "I—I meant my student. That's what I meant."

"I see."

I could hear the smile in his voice, small but there. The tension hadn't disappeared, but something in him had eased, just a little.

"Thank you, Jeff. Really."

"It's okay. Just let the school know so they'll release Xinxin to me."

"I will."

When he hung up, I sat back in my chair, looking out the window at Xinxin, still curled up on the bench, alone in the middle of the playground.

Whatever wouldn't I do to bring a smile to that girl's face?